The Goblin Emperor

By: Katherine Addison

Narrated by: Kyle McCarley

The Goblin Emperor is a vividly imagined fantasy of court intrigue and dark magics in a steampunk-inflected world, by a brilliant young talent, Katherine Addison.

The youngest, half-goblin son of the Emperor has lived his entire life in exile, distant from the Imperial Court and the deadly intrigue that suffuses it. But when his father and three sons in line for the throne are killed in an "accident," he has no choice but to take his place as the only surviving rightful heir.

Entirely unschooled in the art of court politics, he has no friends, no advisors, and the sure knowledge that whoever assassinated his father and brothers could make an attempt on his life at any moment.

Surrounded by sycophants eager to curry favor with the naïve new emperor, and overwhelmed by the burdens of his new life, he can trust nobody. Amid the swirl of plots to depose him, offers of arranged marriages, and the specter of the unknown conspirators who lurk in the shadows, he must quickly adjust to life as the Goblin Emperor. All the while, he is alone, and trying to find even a single friend . . . and hoping for the possibility of romance, yet also vigilant against the unseen enemies that threaten him, lest he lose his throne–or his life.

Katherine Addison's The Goblin Emperor is an exciting fantasy novel, set against the pageantry and color of a fascinating, unique world.

Within THE CHRONICLES OF OSRETH

The Goblin Emperor

The Cemeteries of Amalo trilogy

The Witness for the Dead

The Grief of Stones

The Tomb of Dragons

A Macmillan Audio production from Tor Books

©2022 Katherine Addison (P)2022 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“Challenging, invigorating, and unique. If courtly intrigue is your wine of choice, The Goblin Emperor is the headiest vintage I've come across in years.” (Scott Lynch, best-selling author of The Lies of Locke Lamora)

“I enjoyed The Goblin Emperor a great deal. I was sucked right into her world of goblins, elves, and airships, and was anxious to the very end to find out how Maia, the unwanted halfblood son of the Emperor, who finds himself unexpectedly on the throne, learns to navigate the intrigues and danger of the imperial court. An engrossing read!” (Kristen Britain, New York Times best-selling author of Blackveil)

My Favorite Book - And I do not say so lightly

I first read this book in January 2020 and since then have held all others up to it. The characters are wonderful, Maia is brilliant and incredibly relatable, the politics and the courts' machinations are fascinating, and the story is written so... So vividly. I swear I've read and reread and listened to this book more than twenty times in the last couple years. It's really that good (or maybe that is more a measure of my obsession with it?!).
As far as this audiobook goes, the narration is very good. Of course, having read the book so many times before getting an audible account, I was disappointed by a few of the voices, but that didn't actually matter - it was a personal problem and had nothing to do with how well it was read. In the background, in two places, there is an echo. Otherwise, it's all fantastic.

An Amazing first novel

I heard about this book as a good entry into the SciFi genre. I already love the genre but was willing to check out a new book. I found myself listening as often as I could. I guess that is the equivalent of "I couldn't put it down." The author creates an amazing world of Goblins and Elves with as much detail as JRR Tolkien but with a writing style more like CS Lewis. There are no great battles or epic conflicts but a great story. The only odd thing is the author rarely explains the world. It is almost as if you walk into a conversation between two friends and you have to guess the meaning of words by how the fit in the story. Also, because it was an Audible book I had a hard time keeping track of all the characters. I kept wanting to flip to a page with a family tree or index of names. Overall, I highly recommend the book, for those who love SciFi or never tried it before.

Captivating!

I kept asking myself “why am I so invested when so little is actually happening”, but so much was happening all at the same time!

my favorite book :)

ive read this book countless times, but only just listened to the audiobook. it’s a really excellent read and listen, and the narrator does an excellent job with the conlang! if you like court drama and the power of kindness, this is the book for you :)

Sweet little ditty.

It's starts cruel and whiny with ridiculous names that mean nothing in English. But then you fall for Maia and can't put it down.